The Hunt
by Hoodman
Summary: Sequel to Titans Rising. Slade has been tracked down to Warren City. And his new creation is ready to fufill its purpose of destroying the Titans. Can the Titans survive the monsters rampage, or are they doomed to fall before this mighty foe?
1. Arrival

Welcome to the first chapter of the sequel to "Titans Rising". This story will take longer to update, since I'm doing "The Suffering" at the same time, and I don't multitask that well. But I will probably edit this story a lot, since now I have to go back to my last story to catch up.

Anyway, onto the story. Enjoy "The Hunt".

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Terra sat on her rock as she and Beast Boy flew towards a city that sat in-between her home in Jump City and Gotham called Warren City, which was where she had began her travels. She shivered slightly, the cool night air chilling her through her outfit as she sped along, trying to keep up with the changeling that soared as an eagle ahead of her.

The Titans had found a way to unhook the suit from her, hacking into it and manually pulling out the electric pulsators that controlled her nerve pulses and ultimately, herself. But it had come with a cost. Without the suit, she no longer had the ones that helped her keep her powers in check, so now she was back to square one. Her training under Slade had improved her abilities more than the Titans could have in the same amount of time, but the suit was her crutch, and now it was gone. It felt like a new weight off her shoulders that had replaced an old one, the old one being to keep herself in check. No longer could she lift rocks bordering on hills, no more could she build sculptures without lifting a finger. But it had been worth it.

To her, it had all been worth it and more.

Because it had separated her from the thing that Slade had wanted her to be. A mere puppet, nothing more than a high-ranking lackey.

After the suit had been removed from her, she had been given her old Titans uniform to change into, and putting it on had brought back the memories. The battles, the life at the tower, the carnival.

The house of mirrors.

She remembered that above all else. The way Beast Boy had fought, the passion with which he had attacked Slade with scaring her into running away. But that was the past. Right now, she had a mission to accomplish. It was the first step towards redemption.

She remembered the difficulty of regaining the city's trust, and even more so, their respect. The first few times she had appeared, angry mobs would attempt to run her down, both physically and mentally. The names that some citizens had shouted in anger had torn her to shreds. One incident in particular stuck out like a sore thumb, the pinnacle of the people's need for revenge.

Terra remembered it like it had happened yesterday.

()()()

The Titans were lounging about, with the team relaxing from a hard days work. Without warning, Robin's communicator had gone off, and flipping it open had revealed information on a riot in downtown. Closing it and replacing it in his belt, he turned to his comrades.

"Guys, there's a riot downtown."

The others groaned, and Robin tried to pacify his annoyed teammates as they expressed their reluctance to help after working nearly non-stop to get everything back in order.

"I know, I don't want to go either, but we have to. Um, Terra... could I speak to you for a minute?"

"Sure." She said curiously, wondering what he wanted with her. "Is something wrong?"

"It's about the riot... uh, guys, could I speak to her in private?"

The others knew by the tone of his voice what had made him need to speak to Terra alone. Beast Boy clenched his fist, and Raven put a restraining hand on his shoulder.

"They'll get over it. Don't let those ignorant fools get to you. They need time, like you did."

"Yeah, I know."

They exited, leaving the newest member and the leader alone in the living room. Robin sat on the table in front of the couch. He gestured for Terra to sit, and looked her in the eye as he relayed his concerns about the uprising in the city.

"Terra, I don't think you should go."

"Why not?"

"Well..." he sighed, and looked at her with pity in his eyes and tone.

"I can't soften the blow any, but look at this."

He handed her his communicator, and Terra opened it to reveal a picture of the rioters. They had all manner of makeshift weapons, from trashcan lid shields to pipes serving as clubs. But her gaze fell upon the signs that some wielded, the writing slapping her in the face as she read them with a mixture of sadness and fury.

DEATH TO TRAITORS One sign read, and another showed a scribble of her being shot in the head with a gun. Others had similar sayings on them, but there was one that a man held who stood in front of the others, seeming to be inciting more anger from the protesters that were gathered in the streets. Terra looked at this picture, and she gripped the device tightly, her hand quivering in rage and confusion. Why would they keep doing this? Why not let the past fade away like a nightmare from a child's mind? Robin broke the tense silence in the room, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder as he spoke with concern for his fellow teammate. 

"Terra, it would be stating the obvious to say that this is about you."

He continued to speak, and Terra hung her head down as she listened to his words.

"And I know it's not fair. God knows this isn't fair. But it's happening, and from what I can tell it won't stop soon. But we'll figure out a way. Now Terra, do you think you can go or not?"

She didn't hesitate, but tears welled up in her eyes as she gave her answer.

"Yes."

"Alright. But I want you to leave if things get out of hand, okay?"

"Alright."

Robin nodded his head. "Then let's go."

The two left the room and went to the elevator where the other teens were waiting. Robin walked into the elevator without a word, and the Titans followed his example, not a word being said between them as they all went to the bottom floor of Titans Tower to the waiting T-Car below. Piling in without a word, they all headed towards the riot, Cyborg stopping before they came into view should things get rough. If their means of transportation was destroyed, then they might not get away in time should the rioters decide to rush them.

The got out and walked towards the mob that wanted to see Terra be punished for her destruction of the city.

The head honcho of the massive group spoke for them all, talking not with the air of a stuck up leader, but with that of someone who has had a great injustice done to them. He had long brown hair tied back into a ponytail, and had a goatee that was the same color. He was wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans with a gray jacket on. He ranted at the blonde haired girl with a passion, tears in his eyes as he yelled in rage at the girl that had taken over the city for Slade.

"So the traitor shows up. Stand down, Titans. We don't want to hurt you for what she's done. We want justice!"

The crowd shouted in agreement, ready to charge at the drop of the hat.

"And the traitor must face it this day!"

A loud uproar followed this, and Terra backed towards the car, and Beast Boy put an arm around her. She got close to him, and the leader of the throng saw it.

"You dare seek refuge in them? After what you've done? You make me nauseous. All those innocent lives destroyed in the name of conquest. Men, women, children, did you care? _Did you?!_"

He spat on the ground, emphasizing his hatred for the blonde as he continued to speak.

"You don't deserve to be a Titan. In fact, you don't deserve to be called a criminal! You degrade the word itself. Come on, face the maelstrom you have brought on your own head."

The crowd again shouted their conformity to the man's words, but ceased all sound as Cyborg grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt. The mechanical teen threw him into the midst of the rioters, and shouted so that all present could hear him speak.

"Y'all want Terra to leave the Titans?"

The crowd regained their voices and shouted confirmation of his statement.

"Then I'm going with her. See you idiots later. Hope you can live with yourselves after this."

Robin spoke up next.

"If Terra goes, I follow. I think I speak for all of the Titans when I say its either six of us or none at all. What'll it be?"

The crowd was silent.

"I thought so. I don't want to see any of you holding those signs again, or we will leave this city. And I give you my word that we won't come back."

With that, he turned his back on them and walked towards the T-Car.

"Come on, let's get out of here." He said to the Titans, and they all followed silently, walking with the air of rage around them as they almost stomped back to their way to the car. Cyborg saw that Terra was walking alone, and a single can hit her in the back of the head. She looked behind her, and the crowd was again fired up, since they couldn't get her kicked off the team, they had settled for making her suffer by throwing things her way, things like used soda cans, beer bottles, and just about anything that came to hand. Cyborg saw an incoming glass bottle, and grabbed the missile before it could hit the blonde, throwing it back towards the crowd so that it landed on top of the front rows' heads. He nudged Beast Boy and indicated the things that were being thrown. The green changeling nodded, and slowly urged Terra to the front, where the others closed like a protective barrier between her and the vengeful citizens of Jump City.

()()()

As soon as they arrived back at Titans Tower, Terra found a note tied to a knife that had been rammed into the ground in front of the Tower. Opening it, she read what some brave protestor had put on the scrap of paper.

_**Why do you insist on plaguing the Titans, traitor? You tried to kill them, you tried to kill us, and you expect for us all to just forget about the lives you took? This knife will have a noble purpose by planting itself in your treacherous heart. I would pray that God have mercy on you, but I think you are beyond that. So instead I shall pray for the Titans, and that they may be saved from the demon that you are. I hope that you get what you deserve in Hades, God forgive me for saying it. May the Titans purge themselves of your poison.**_

Terra clenched her hands into fists around the paper, and Raven put a hand on the enraged girl's shoulder.

"Terra, let me see it."

The blonde handed her the paper, and the others gathered around to read the note that someone had left on their doorstep. Robin finished reading the hate mail first, and turned back towards the city, his teeth gritting against each other as he fought to control his rage. How dare they do this to her, how _dare _they...

Starfire went over and stood beside Robin, speaking to him softly so that only he could hear.

"They do not understand that she is not the monster they make her out to be. They will learn. Someday, they will learn. Do not let their insults reach you, Robin. They have also filled my heart with fury. But we must fight back the need for retaliation, and hold our heads high and let them wallow in their ignorance and hatred."

"You're right. But I don't know if Terra will have a head to hold high if she stays in the city. There has got to be a way for her to prove to them that she is on our side. But how?"

"That will come in due time. But let us help our friend through this. She needs us more now than she ever has needed someone before in her life."

She doesn't need us, she needs Beast Boy. He is the one who stopped her... you know."

"Her other side."

Yeah. If anyone can help her, it will be him. He's got some connection with her that we can't even begin to comprehend, let alone fill in. We should give them their space. She will come to us when she's ready."

"I only hope that he will be able to aid her during this time."

"It's not in our hands, Star. It's in Beast Boy's. But even he might not be able to get her through this. All we can do is hope. Come on, let's go inside. We need to be there when she's ready."

The two Titans entered the tower, where they headed to the living room. Cyborg and Raven were sitting on the couch opposite of each other, discussing what had happened in downtown that afternoon. They looked up as the doors hissed open, and Robin and Starfire walked into the dark atmosphere of the room. Robin sat down on the couch, and Starfire sat next to him, her eyes looking to the other members that were present in the room. Robin broke the silence.

"Terra?"

"In her room with BB. We decided to give them their space. This is really eating at her, man. I've never seen her so upset."

"This must be worse than all the other times. Not only are the people against her, the morbid irony of it is that she did it so that they would like her. As far as I can tell, that's why she went over to Slade's side. For control over her powers."

Robin inquired the sorceress. "You've only inferred? Why haven't you read her mind?"

"Robin, even I know when to pry and when not to, as shocking as it may seem to you. If Terra wants us to know why she left us for Slade, then she'll tell us herself. I'm not going to invade her privacy over idle curiosity."

Starfire spoke up next. "I agree with Raven. We have no right to be in her business, as you say on this planet. She will tell us when the time is right. But we must not force it upon her."

Robin voiced his agreement with the alien girl. "I'm with y'all. I was just wondering why you hadn't yet. If memory serves, you weren't that eager to let her on the team. And you thought that she was a traitor in the first place, or at least claimed that you did."

"True, but her life is none of my business. Although if I had, we could've stopped her from destroying the city."

Cyborg finally added his view of the situation. "But hen she would be in jail, and BB would probably be sulking. It pains me to say it, but the first few days after Terra left just weren't the same without his usual wise-cracks. It's just not normal for the little guy to be like that. He's the upbeat one, and seeing him depressed like that just took the cheer outta me."

Starfire added onto the mechanical teen's statement. "Yes, it was... strange not hearing him joke around all the time."

Robin interjected. "I know what you mean, but we can reminisce about that later. Right now, Terra's going through things that not even therapy could help. But we're going to have to be better than therapists. She needs a good dose of companionship, but not now."

Raven agreed with the Boy Wonder. "He's right. But as of now, all she needs is Beast Boy."

"I hope he can help her." The robotic hero replied glumly, reflecting the present mood of the Tower.

Starfire lightened the mood a little bit with her words. "I have faith in our friend. He will help her, I am sure of it."

Robin looked at the girl sadly. "I hope you're right. For Terra's sake."

At that moment, Beast Boy was trying to calm down a righteously infuriated Terra, who was sitting on her bed, fists clenched so tight that a mouse would have suffocated had she been holding one.

"Why do they insist on tormenting me?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, they do have a good reason to be mad at you. After all, you _did_ take over the city and caused several civilian casualties in the process. But they've overlooked one fact. You repented. Heck, you even helped bring the city back to their control. But they overlook this. I wouldn't doubt that the ringleader lost family to your invasion. He's just upset over his loss, and you happen to be his outlet for his anger and grief."

"I couldn't say no, he would have killed me."

"They don't know that. Look at it from their point of view. They're living happily in the city, and suddenly all they knew was torn from them by you. So they automatically assume it's your fault. They don't know it was Slade pulling the strings."

"But why this? I try to help, I try..." She was near tears now, clutching a pillow tightly to her chest as she sat in a fetal position on the bed.

I know you do, but they want retribution, not repentance. They'll get over it."

"You really think so?"

"Terra..."

He sighed, putting a hand on his forehead to rest himself as he thought of how to word his next statement.

"Terra, they need time. Judging by what happened back there, they need a lot of time. But there is something in them that has to forgive you. I don't know what, but it's there. It just needs time to come out."

Hopefully I won't have my head served on a silver platter to the mayor by then." She said bitterly, and Beast Boy sat next to her.

"They can protest, they can threaten, but they can't do. I don't think that it will escalate so far as an assassination attempt."

Terra wanted to believe the green changeling, but she noticed that he was much more alert than she had ever seen.

After checking the room, he turned his attention back to Terra.

"Look, we'll figure out something."

"Like what?"

Beast Boy stared at the ground between his feet, his voice as intense as a hunter who's being stalked by a tiger.

"I don't know, Terra. I just don't know."

The Titans all sat in silence, waiting for what they didn't know, but waiting for something. But that would happen several days later, when Slade revealed his well being to them.

()()()

But that was the main reason she had volunteered to go with him on this long-range mission. Maybe leaving the city for a few days would give the populace the time and the space to forgive her. It was unlikely, but at least she could escape the throngs of people that wanted her head on a stake. Whether figuratively or literally remained to be determined.

She looked at the eagle that flew next to her, and she noted the grace with which Beast Boy flew. It was as though he really was an eagle, not only in body but also in heart and soul. The way he glided and flapped his wings looked to her like instinctive smoothness, his movements' fluid as he swooped this way and that, seeming to enjoy the freedom that he got in the air.

Beast Boy himself was noticing her discomfort, and was looking for a way to stop the chill from reaching her. Seeing none, he noted that they were over a large lake that fed into the ocean, almost a peninsula of water that was as fresh as a creek but so clean you could see the bottom in twenty feet of water. Of course the water was boiled to remove harmful pathogens, but the beauty of it in the night was stunning, especially with the moonlight bouncing off the surface to mingle with the reflection of the stars as they water lay almost undisturbed, only a small ripple here and there breaking the vast plain of liquid like gently rolling hills in a pasture. But Beast Boy set all this aside as he noted one important fact.

The air around it was kept extremely cool by the condensation of the lake, and this allowed spray from the nearby ocean to linger, making it freezing to the girl who lacked any fur or feathers to drive away the liquid that made almost a mist in the night, the tiny droplets clinging to her skin like barnacles, holding in the cold that annoyed her body. Beast Boy knew that in order to make her warmer, she would need to be protected from the film of water. And knowing his animals, he thought of an ingenious solution.

The rock Terra had picked was a fairly decent sized one, large enough that two people could spread out without some part of their body hanging off the edge. The boulder would be a great platform for a curled up large animal...

Beast Boy swooped to the girl that was huddled up into a fetal position, and became a small bear. He curled around Terra, the fur keeping the spray off of her for the most part. Terra would have fallen asleep, had she not been 200 feet over a veritable sea of freezing water. She popped her fingers and settled to scratching his neck, which brought out a friendly growl from the large creature.

They zoomed off into the night, heading towards the thug infested streets of Warren City, where something beyond comprehension was observing them at that very moment.

()()()

Slade sat in the chair in his backup base, where he had created a plan b if his original one had failed. He had invested heavily in biotech research, but not in the field of medicine.

He had invested in bioweaponry.

The masked man had used his various contacts and some of his gigantic pool of money and resources to create a creature that he was sure would destroy the Titans.

At least, until he told it to stop.

When he had received his new weapon, it had been most unruly, constantly breaking out and wreaking havoc among the androids that were then dispatched to bring it under control. Slade had recently installed a chip in its head, its function much like some of the technology in Terra's old suit. It made the creature more docile, up until he commanded it to attack. Then, the device shut down, and the monster would attack anything in its path until Slade gave the command to be still, on which the chip activated and brought it back into an obedient state. When set loose, regardless of its appearance and lack of tactics, it had a certain bestial grace that only someone of Slade's mindset could really appreciate, or even notice. Its moves, while far from refined, had a certain smoothness to it that made it almost like a dancer when it fought. Slade looked at the creature, which patrolled a cage that he had set up close by should any intruders show up. He had yet to test the abomination on a human, since its stealth tactics left something to be desired, and it would ruin his plan if the public knew of the thing that resided underneath the city.

The thing was about as tall as a man, but since it was always hunched over, it was in actuality a few inches over six feet. It was a skin color like someone with a light tan on the upper part of its body, but its legs had the tan color along with blue on the outside part of its left leg and yellow on the inside of both, leaving the tan to run down its right leg, and blue veins stuck out all over this portion like some form of sinister road map. It looked as though it stood on its toes, with an extremely long foot that never touched the ground that was to balance the weight of the beast. Its right hand instead of five fingers was a shortened thumb and two long fingers with claws that could gut a man with a single swipe with them. Its left hand had been completely removed, and in its place a razor sharp sword had been put on the stump. The blade was natural, but had all the properties of steel. There was skin over the eyes, a request of Slade so that it wouldn't rely on the easiest sense to fool too much. As an added plus, it meant that its sense of smell and feeling had been made extremely acute, so that it could use its smell to track a target, then use the vibrations that are transmitted through the air to fight as though it really could see. It could also feel the electrical impulses in the air from the use of energy in a human body or robot. It had humongous muscles, but was still unhindered by the added mass; it seemed to actually move faster than if it had less. A glitch in production had also given it two things that Slade admired. An attitude, which allowed it to taunt its victims, and a sense of loyalty. Since Slade had provided for it, the monstrosity listened to him, Slade often times having its meals of meat cooked so that it could taste delicacies from time to time. The monster didn't seem to care whether it was cooked or raw, but Slade did it nonetheless, even adding spices to it that gave the meat a new flavor that the creature seemed to enjoy. All in all, it was a killing machine, able to tear through almost anything and everything in its path.

Slade was proud of the marvel of science. The beast was almost flawless, its only weakness being the inability to swim, but since its quarry usually was on land, this didn't bother the masked man too much. After all, it was made for speed and agility on the ground, not for the water. He looked at his creation which prowled around the cage in what seemed to be a patrolling maneuver, making sure its territory was secure. Slade also knew of its ability to strike the ground so hard that it made a shockwave, throwing some objects away from it with the force of the pound. This meant that anything up to the size of a small bear would be knocked off its feet, while a large bear would be stopped dead in its tracks, unable to move while trying to regain its balance. This creation was the pinnacle of modern science, and Slade knew exactly how to use it.

The man grinned as he watched the monitor that showed Terra and Beast Boy sailing towards the city, content to be with each other as they flew along, oblivious to the creature that now lurked underneath Warren City.

"Come one, come all." The masked man said, and he smiled in malicious glee underneath the sheet of metal that made up his mask. "All are welcome, but little Terra is the guest of honor. I must see how much her progress has come. Wouldn't you agree, old friend?"

Wintergreen stood in the shadows, looking at the monster with a mixture of sympathy and disgust. He turned from the creature that had settled to sniffing around its enclosure. The man spoke with the air of formality, yet with the undertone of casualness.

"So Terra escapes your grasp. But this? If I do say so myself sir, this seems over the edge. That... thing to destroy one little girl?"

"One girl who is now a Titan and, shall we say, falling for our little changeling."

"So you intend to use this to your advantage, I take it?"

"I wouldn't put it so blandly, but in a sense, yes."

"But what does that abomination have to do with what's going on between the two? Why even mess with them, sir? You're out of their jurisdiction. They have no reason to fight back anymore."

"But I must, you see. I have this all planned out. So far, it has been flawless. The Titans have been separated. Now my bioweapon shall kill the two. The others, enraged by this act, will come here for revenge. And that is where it all comes together."

"But sir, let us muse that somehow the two escape from the creature. What shall you do then? If it fails, you will have to send it to them, make short work of it on their turf."

"Actually, that is also part of the scheme. I intend to have my creation let them escape. When they return and give word of its existence, they will be forced to remain alert, keeping watch all night. And when they are fatigued, we shall strike."

"But the security systems..."

"I have it all planned out. You see, Terra did much more while she was on our side than even she knows. I installed hidden cameras on her, and as she came into contact with the Titans during her stay, they latched onto them. I was surprised by how many were on Beast Boy. But the greatest of knowledge came from the mechanical one, Cyborg. You see, during her time with them the two somehow came into contact with each others hands. I was surprised by how fast she did it. I had just switched on the recorders when I see the inside of Cyborg's hand. And this is where I gained all the information on the tower I would ever need to know."

"How is that, sir?"

"The activation of the Towers security is by connecting Cyborg's system with that of the towers. The exchange of information is processed between the two by his hand, which happens to be where my camera was."

The masked man grinned under the mask. "Really, after that it was all cakewalk. I simply set the camera onto the exchange point, activated the relay device, and I can now control their security from here. I've kept them secure so that they wouldn't inspect the system and find my probe. But as an added bonus, their security is connected to the mainframe, so a simple modification to the camera from here was all that was needed to be able to deactivate not only the security, but everything in the Tower as well. Which is where our new friend comes into play."

"You mean that beast?"

"Precisely. All he has to do is enter the Tower and destroy them as they slumber. And should they wake up and fight back, all the more fun for him. Actually, I think our guests are arriving in the city as we speak."

"Quite a gem sir, but do you think its inhumane to use _that_ on them? Really, wouldn't your androids do it much more quickly and painlessly?"

"Yes, they would, wouldn't they? But I think it's time my creation be put to use. And really, I made him to finish it quickly. A swipe here, a chop there, and the Titans are finished. And even then, I would need to send hundreds upon hundreds of them to wipre out the Titans. Four held off two hundred, think of how many six could do."

"But what if you should lose control over it? What if it develops a will of its own?"

"Then we will have unleashed the worst thing that man has ever created into the world. And nothing will be able to stop it, if what those genetic engineers say is true."

"Then let us pray that is not the case."

"Yes, but I don't even think God Himself will be able to stop it if it escapes."

"Then maybe praying for forgiveness is the only option. Well, I shall retire for the night. Good night sir."

"Good night, my friend."

Wintergreen went to his quarters, leaving Slade staring at the two Titans who where touching down at the docks of Warren City.

{}{}{}

For those of you who didn't know, the riot was a flashback. I don't like those "End Flashback" tags. It distracts from the story. To me the ()()() and {}{}{} tags I use are good since you can't read them, but can skip them over and continue on with the story, plus be able to divide the different sections with minimum break in the flow of the story.

'Til next chapter, this is Hoodman, signing off.


	2. Capture and Rescue

Welcome to chapter two. For some reason I feel that this will not be as popular. I can't explain it, but it feels different from "Titans Rising". Maybe it's just me. I'm writing some of the chapters in chunks to make up for the long wait between "Titans Rising" and this one. But if this story gets flamed, I'm removing it. My motivation comes from y'alls reviews, so leave 'em with pointers and/or anything else that will contribute. And naturally, no flames please.

In this chapter, we find out that Terra used to work for a ganglord. If this does not go over well, I'll change this to something else, but for now it's all I could think of around school and band practice. Just leave whether you want it changed or to keep it. Terra's "garments" are meant to show what kind of person the ganglord is, not to be perverse, so please don't take it this way. I can also change this, but I can't think of anything else that might need to be changed.

Enough rambling. Onto the story...

**Warning: Some language, implied malicious acts, slight drug use.**

{}{}{}

Warren City was not a big city, smaller than Metropolis and dwarfed by Jump City, but it was fairly big, larger than the neighboring Fairview City. But one thing separated this one from all the others. It was the busiest city out of them all.

If you were into the underground, that is.

Terra landed on the docks silently, looking around for any sign of movement. All was silent, and she didn't like it. Beast Boy, who had long since returned to his eagle form to patrol ahead, landed silently next to her, becoming human to relay what he had seen.

"Hey Terra, I..."

The girl slapped a hand over his mouth, stifling the rest of his sentence.

"Shhh, don't you know anything about the docks?" she whispered to him fiercely, looking at him like a veteran looks at a rookie who has made a mistake.

She slowly removed her hand, and Beast Boy took the hint and whispered back.

"What's wrong?"

"This is the docks. Worst part of any town. It's where all the... let's just say there's more business than the stock market."

"Drug trafficking?"

"Not quite. There is some, but it's mostly either the high ranking pimps and their goons. After being caught by them, take my word that I'm not going back."

Beast Boy did not inquire her about her stay, and instead asked of the dangers at the pier.

"So there's some bad guys around, big deal. We took down Slade, remember? And he had hundreds upon hundreds of robots, much more capable than any human could do."

"Beast Boy, just trust me on this. There are two ways we can leave this pier. Silently into the streets, or floating face down into the ocean. If it's all the same to you, I'd prefer the former to the latter option. Follow me, don't make any noise, and by all means _stay out of sight._"

Beast Boy nodded, and both ducked into the man-under-fire position and ran as quiet as mice across the dock towards the safety of the well-lighted streets. They got halfway to their destination when without warning they were surrounded by a large group of thugs, all of them wearing gang clothes and carrying either pistol-grip 12 gauges or Colt .45s. One of them stepped forward. He was white, with a black cap on backwards with a Jolly Roger symbol on the front. He had a white sleeveless shirt with a gray skull on it and black jeans that hung until they were just barely above the ground. He had a shotgun and had it slung across his shoulders so that the barrel was pointing across the width of his chest behind his neck.

"It seems we have illegal immigrants, boys. Shall we give them a wholesome USA welcome?"

The others grinned in silent agreement and many cocked their weapons, pointing at various places on the two teens bodies. The one that had spoken held up his hand to hold back their fire, looking at Terra with surprise.

"Is that you? Terra?"

A sinister smile formed on his lips, and he talked to her like she had been a naughty child.

"Ran away from Sweetooth, did we? You were one of his favorites. But I'm sure you can catch up over dinner at his mansion. May I escort the lovely lady?"

He held out his hand as though he was going to walk her to a dance, and his gang laughed at the gesture, throwing back their heads to howl with hilarity at the sky, while the ringleader continued to mock the girl for the sake of his crew.

"Come now, our host is waiting, and you know the punishment for being tardy." He said grimly, and Terra winced at the memory of his methods of punishment.

The group fell silent, even their life on the street making them humble at the thought of their boss's ways of dealing with unruly hired hands. Beast Boy was about to attack, preparing to transform when Terra stopped him.

"Beast Boy, don't. These guys could gun you down before you even finished morphing." The girl mumbled out of the corner of her mouth so that the leader of the mob wouldn't hear. She then spoke up to the man, who was barely 18 years of age, and already up to the equivalent of a captain for his boss.

"I hope you also remembered how I escaped. About what happened to those who tried to stop me."

She returned his grin, sneering at the man who still looked like a teenager.

"We wouldn't want _that _again, now would we?"

"No we wouldn't. Which is why..."

Quick as lightning he pulled out a revolver, pointing it at her chest. Pulling the trigger, there wasn't a gunshot, only a hiss and thus as a dart hit her in the chest. Terra looked up from the dart to the man, and her eyes glazed over as the tranquilizer went to work.

I brought along a new toy. Now, about the fate of grassboy here..."

He looked at Beast Boy with a blank expression, taking stock of him as he twirled the pistol in his hand as he contemplated his next move.

"What shall I do with you..."

One of the gang spoke up. "Let's kill 'im. I need a moving target."

"Yeah, let's have some fun with the freak."

The leader held up his gun, silencing the hooligans as he decided on the changeling's fate.

"I say we let Sweetooth decide. Come on, let's bring them both back."

He turned his attention to the shape-shifter who was about to forget Terra's warning about their aim.

"Will you come quietly, or will I have to put you to sleep as well?"

"What did you do to her?"

The man chuckled, regarding him with sick humor as he talked to the boy that had had enough of his taunting.

"Are we smitten with the lovely lady? Don't get your knickers in a knot; it's only a tranq. She'll wake up feeling drowsy and that's about it. Or she might feel even worse if boss decides to... well, I'll let your imagination run wild with that one."

He turned to his gang and signaled for two of them to carry the girl that was knocked out cold from the tranquilizer. Beast Boy didn't trust the men who stepped forward for the job, and picked her lithe form up himself.

"I'll take her, if it's all the same to you."

The man shrugged. "A nod's as good as a wink, man. By the way, did I tell you that they call me Ace?"

"I think you forgot to mention that earlier."

"Ah well. But I'd enjoy your little walk between here and the bosses place. I think he has a special job for your girlfriend. But don't worry." He said calmly, seeing Beast Boy's reaction to his statement. "He wouldn't do _that_. As unbelievable as it may seem to you, he has some scruples, few and loose as they are. She'll be more of a... servant. Perhaps serve his workers after a hard day enforcing his law. But you... the most you can hope for is that he'll take a liking to you and use you as an exotic pet. If I even cared, I'd feel sorry for you. But since I don't..." he spat on the ground in front of the morpher, and smiled at him. "Well, that's your problem."

He gestured to his crew, who enclosed the two in a circle in case Beast Boy tried to run for it.

"Come on, the man himself awaits."

The group began walking off, the thugs talking amongst themselves about their find.

"Boss's gonna be real happy we found his little runaway."

"Maybe he'll let us, you know... _play_ with her."

"Nah, man, he wouldn't do that. Stick to the others. Beside"

"Damn, and she's a fine one too."

"Get over it, Plug, you'll never get 'er."

"Ah, can't a man dream?"

Beast Boy held the girl closer to him protectively, and Ace noticed this. He suddenly felt a slight pity for the two. Having to live with Sweetooth was a dangerous business. He would "execute" on a whim, but other than the angry slaying every now and then he was quite the gentleman, as far as ganglords went. And that was what made him so dangerous. You never could tell what he was going to do next. But he knew that Terra was going to bear the blunt of his punishment, though it would be slight. He had taking a liking to her when she had been brought in after being ambushed while she slept in an abandoned control tower. She had been handing out beer and cigarettes to the gang members when Ace had first met her. After receiving his beer, he had sat down and managed to strike up a conversation with her. He remembered the memory lightly, remaining alert to keep an eye on the two prisoners as he walked automatically towards the lord's hideout, where he had lived for as long as he could remember.

()()()

Ace had just gotten back from a special mission that the lords had sent him on, which was to recapture a warehouse that a rival gang had claimed as their own. Sweetooth had sent Ace on the team because of his reputation as a marksman. That had been the mission that had put the boy into the high position as a leader. He was out celebrating their victory and the swearing in of several members that had surrendered to the task force. He had popped open his can of beer and sat silently near Terra, whom he didn't know that well. She was clad in a bikini top and loincloth, and that was pretty much about it. He saw the disgusted look in her eyes as she surveyed the festivities of the thugs. He began to speak to her, looking at her face to show that he had no bad intentions.

"Hey babe, why the long face?"

She looked at him as though he had just asked the dumbest question she had ever heard.

"Let's see, I'm being forced to serve the scum of human society with nearly nothing on, surrounded by perverts and murderers serving them beer and unable to stop them from getting roaring drunk with absolutely no way of protecting myself should they decide to attack me. What's there not to like?"

"Chill, just trying to start a conversation with you. How'd you get here anyway?"

"They found me sleeping while they prowled around. Why, where you one of them?"

"Nah, I'd remember you. But why'd you choose to sleep at the docks, of all places? Didn't you know about the guys here?"

"Well I do now."

"Huh. Anyway, I wouldn't worry about being attacked. The guys know not to mess with Sweetooth's girls. If they do, he'll do something about it."

"So he has a heart after all."

Ace chuckled at her statement. "He's not that bad a guy. Yeah, he's got some morals, although they have more loopholes than clothes of a hobo."

"That's a comforting thought."

"Ah, if he doesn't, I'm sure someone will. Hell, I'd do it."

"Yeah, that's gonna happen. The thug risks his life for the damsel in distress."

"I ain't kiddin'. I really would."

"And why the noble rescue attitude all of a sudden?"

"Because you don't deserve to be violated like that. I have morals too, and letting harm come to those that are in your position is one of them. Besides, it's either that, or you're left with them."

He jerked his head at the gang members, who were laughing uproariously at some joke one had just told. Ace looked at her with a casual look but serious tone.

"You don't want to get into the middle of them. They'll rip you to shreds for a good laugh when they get like this."

"And you don't?"

"You see me joining them?"

Terra looked thoughtful for a moment as she mused over his words.

"You're not like the others, are you?"

"And she sees the light. Anyway, I'd watch your back. The guys will party until the beer runs out, then they'll bring out the real stuff. Weed and crack and all the rest of it. That's when you need to get out, and stay away from everyone."

"Thanks for the tip."

"Anytime. Just find someway to avoid meeting people. It should be safe in an hour or two, but until then, stay low and stay silent."

He then saw that some guys had started to notice them, and he whispered to her out of the corner of his mouth.

"I'd scram right about now. They're noticing you. Leave now, or else they'll try and stop you. Go, now!"

Terra hurriedly walked towards the exit when one of the bouncers that were stationed inside to prevent the girls from leaving stopped her.

"Where you goin'? You ain't supposed to leave."

Ace walked up to them and talked to them casually.

"It's alright guys, let her go. She's getting' us some more beer. Come on, go have some fun with our crew. I'll escort her so she doesn't run off."

"Uh... alright, but Sweetooth ain't gonna like this."

"Let me worry about that. Now go have a good time."

The two left to join the others, and Ace made a show of dragging Terra out of the door.

"Come on, we're getting some beer."

As soon as they were out of sight, he released his hold on her, and she rubbed her arm where he had yanked her. They were in a two-direction hallway heading left, towards the storage area.

"Did you really need all that force?"

"Sorry, had to look convincing. Come on, let's get out of here."

The two walked in silence for a little ways, and it was then that Terra asked the question that had been bugging her for the longest time.

"Why help me?"

"Because it felt wrong leaving you to the mercies of the boys, alright? I don't know why, but you don't deserve that. I've never seen them like that. Usually they just trip out and go to bed. Must have been a bad harvest. Anyway, they were liable to forget the boss's rules, so you were in the wrong place at the worst of times."

He arrived at the stock of beer that lay at the other end of the hall, and he grabbed a cooler chock full of alcohol to bring back to the guys.

"I'll take the beer. You go upstairs to the servants' quarters and stay there. I'll see you later."

"See ya. And thanks for the help."

"Anything to keep the damsel in distress from harm."

He grinned cockily at her and started back towards the party, which was hopefully dying down. All he had ever taken in was beer, and only minimal quantities of that. Which made him the quickest one of them all mentally, earning him the nickname Ace. He looked back to see Terra walking up the staircase that led to the living area for the servants, which was off limits to the gangs, and they knew it. He turned back and brought the beer to his men, who howled with joy at the prospect of more celebration. He soon retired back to a corner to sleep, glad that they had finally settled down to a few scattered groups here and there, the couches and comfy chairs soon piled with snoring thugs, each with his hand on his gun, a habit from living on the streets.

Ace fell asleep hoping that Terra would survive the ordeal that the servants faced being under the control of Sweetooth. And when she finally found the opportunity to use her powers to escape, when she was about to be shot by a thug that blocked her path in a one-man ambush was gunned down by a shotgun blast to the head. Not even waiting to see her savior, she tore out into the cold night air towards the safety of the streets as Ace watched her leave, cocking his 12 gauge in case she had any pursuers. Seeing none, he went back inside to another warehouse where a search party was being formed. He burst into the door and called out to the gangs who where about to track the blonde.

"Guys, she popped Grizzly and headed across the docks! Hurry up; I'll have reinforcements on the way soon. Go!"

Not questioning their newly appointed leader, they charged out in the direction he had indicated, which was away from the fleeing girl entirely. He went in the direction she had last taken and found her pinned behind a wall with some thugs keeping a steady stream of bullets at her as she sent rocks in return. She looked around the corner and nearly got a bullet to the brain and ducked behind the wall, sending more rocks at them before peeking out to see what damage she had done. Ace saw a sniper on the building ahead of him and pulled out his revolver as the sniper trained his sights on Terra's leg, wanting to wound the girl for later capture. Ace's bullet took him through the chest and he fell down with a scream that distracted the gangsters long enough for Terra to bring down a hail of rocks that sent some of the dock crashing into the waves below and allowing her to escape into the streets, where she tore into like a bat out of Hell, as the remaining thugs sent bullets in her wake as she made her escape. A few days later, she left the city to go wandering, and neither she nor Ace saw or thought of the other until this night, when there was a reunion for the two friends, one who risked execution so the other could find a better life.

()()()

Ace snapped out of his reverie when they arrived at the same warehouse that Terra had escaped from earlier. Putting back on his casual attitude, he turned to Beast Boy, who was looking at the other goons, ready for an attack from any direction. Ace walked up behind him and tapped his shoulder.

"I'd hand over the little lady to me. Methinks it would be bad if Sweetooth found out your connection to her."

He turned his orders to his crew. "None of you are gonna tell what happened tonight. If anyone asks, we stumbled upon grassboy and the lovely lady under the control of the Assassin Gang. We drove 'emem off and took the two prisoner for him to decide on what to do with 'em. Any objections?"

He cocked his shotgun threateningly, and his minions nodded their agreement.

"We got it Ace."

"Sweetooth won't find out about it."

"Yeah, our lips are sealed."

"Good."

He opened the sliding doors that led into the large room that was not unlike the place where the Titans had gone to with Blackfire.

He turned to the changeling and smiled cockily at him.

"Welcome to your new home. Enjoy your stay."

Once inside, Beast Boy took stock of his surroundings. There was a staircase that led to a second story, and that was all that seemed to be originally there. A mirror ball was hanging in the center, and it was packed with people, all dancing to rap music that blared out from a large stereo Ran by a DJ in the back on the wall opposite the stairs and on the same side as where they had come in. The staircase itself was in the far left-hand corner, and the upstairs went into the wall and turned, which was darkened from the lack of light. There were various disco balls that put a rainbow of color on the ground, giving the people an eerie appearance as the group headed through the people toward the stairs, which led to the living quarters and the lair of Sweetooth himself.

Ace had Terra slung across one shoulder, having removed the dart so it wouldn't pierce her chest and into her vital organs as he led his crew and the unhappy Beast Boy to Sweetooth's domain.

Ace reached the top of the stairs and turned to his gang.

"You guys go have fun. I'll take care of these two."

"You sure man?" One of his closer members asked him, and Ace patted the young man's shoulder heartily.

"I can handle a KOed fugitive and her boyfriend. You need a break. Besides, it would be pointless for you to listen to me and Sweetooth talk while you stood outside the door. Go on, and save me a beer, will ya?"

The other man smiled and ran down the stairs, calling to him over his shoulder to his friend.

"Sure, man. Don't take too long."

"I'll do my best."

He turned back towards the hall that led to Sweetooth's room. Arriving at the door, he turned to Beast Boy, and handed him Terra.

"Wake her up as quick as you like. Then stay silent unless Sweetooth or me addresses you."

"Why should I listen to you?"

"You want her to get popped with a shotgun? Trust me, I know how to handle this. She knows Sweetooth. Escaped from here about a year ago. I can tell you, he's gonna be jumping for joy to get her back. Just follow my lead and don't speak to her at all, or both of you might be on the receiving end of a 12 gauge."

"Why help us?"

"Let's just say me and her go back."

Beast Boy was about to question him further when the guy sighed, walking over to Terra. He crouched down and gently slapped her face. When that didn't work, he shook her hard.

"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty, it's time to face the man himself."

She groggily woke up, and he stopped shaking her and stood up. He turned his attention to Beast Boy.

"Finish getting her up and movin'. She's gonna need all her wits when dealing with Sweetooth."

Beast Boy decided to follow his instructions, and made her sit up. Terra got up with a groan, rubbing her head as she recovered from the effects of the tranquilizer. She looked from Beast Boy to Ace, looking at him dazedly. Ace opened the door and walked in. He looked one last time to Beast Boy, his voice deadly serious as he warned him for a final time.

"Not a word."

With that, he immediately put on the attitude that he had had when they first met. Grabbing Terra by the scruff of her neck, her hauled her into the room, and Beast Boy followed silently, knowing that their lives depended on his words. Upon entering, he noticed that the room was packed with people, each one seemed to either be drunk or stoned, but a few here and there were still sober. Ace tossed his shotgun to a gang member who caught it and laid it on the ground, being sure that the barrel was pointed away from Sweetooth and his fellow gang members. The three approached Sweetooth, and Beast Boy took note of the man that sat before them.

Sweetooth was black, and he was quite obese, looking like a gangster version of Fat Albert. He was wearing a white shirt with a red jacket, and black pants hung down to the ground around his legs. He looked as though he had never stood up from the lounge chair he was sitting on, his feet laying on the ground covered by sneakers that probably were above size twenties. He was surrounded by guards, who were standing around wielding AK-47's; each with a different gang symbol tattooed on them somewhere. Sweetooth saw Ace approach, and called out in a voice that reminded Beast Boy of someone that had taken a rake to the inside of their throat.

"Ace, mah captain, what news you brang meh?"

"Not news, but something better."

He threw Terra down at the man's feet, and she raised herself on her hands and knees, staring at the ground so he wouldn't see the murder in her eyes as the man laughed blissfully at the girl before him.

"Iss you, that runaway gurl! What you doin' back here, eh? Come to see uncle Sweetooth, yes?"

"Not quite." She said softly, letting a little malice slip into her voice as she addressed the humongous lord in front of her.

"Then why you come back? You run away, and you know the penalty for runnin' away from meh."

He leaned forward, grinning evilly at her to emphasis his word. "Death."

"So go ahead and do it, better than what I was doing before."

"Ha ha ha! You really expect me to shoot you? Oh, what a cahd you ah. Nah, I ain't gonna gun you down, but what to do... Hmmm... Mebbe you go back to old job, yes? That'll show you my generosity."

He laughed at his own joke, and several others joined in, all except for Beast Boy, Terra and Ace. Sweetooth again began talking to the girl, speaking as though she was an old friend.

"Stand up, lemme see how you grown."

She did so, staring right back at the man with a look that would have made a lion flee in terror. All it did to the obese ganglord before her was make him laugh again, which he seemed to do a lot. He talked to her as though she was a toddler who had just shown him something that they had made.

"My my, you grew up. I 'member you when you was half a head shorter. Plus you weren't under... these circumstances. Ah well, those times are behind us. Ace, where you find 'er?"

Found 'er under attack by the Assassins. Blew them away and brought 'er to you."

"The Assassins, huh? They be gettin' too full of themselves as of late. Gonna have to send out some boys to get 'em if they don't settle down. They know all this territory belong to me. It makes me wonder why they won't join me. Lost a lot of good men to 'em."

"Their just too stuck up to see what's good for 'em."

"Mebbe they are, mebbe they ain't. What's this?"

Sweetooth for the first time saw Beast Boy, and was stunned by his color.

"You got some badass grass stains on yeh boy. What happen to you?"

"They aren't grass stains." He growled fiercely, and the man acted taken aback by his tone.

"Whoa boy, let's keep that temper down in heyuh. Ace, why you bring him in?"

"Let's just say he's got a talent that you might enjoy."

He turned to Beast Boy, talking to him impatiently like he had already asked him multiple times.

"Well? Show him what you got."

Beast Boy decided it was better to listen to the boy, and became a gorilla, still standing behind Ace as he demonstrated his abilities to the lord. Sweetooth was taken aback by this, and was quite impressed with the display.

"You got some talent there, boy. You do anything else?"

The gorilla became a snake, then an alligator, then an ostrich, and Sweetooth was shocked at the boy's power, staring in awe at him like he was a new toy that his mother had bought for him.

"My my, you are quite the catch, aren'tcha boy? I think I'm gonna keep you. You can stay, well... find a place to sleep. You should be able to find one with that impressive ability of yours. Ace, take her to the servants' quarters and the other guy to the first floor. Oh, and send Twitch up to meh. I have a special assignment for his crew."

"As you wish."

He dragged Terra out by the back of her shirt, and Beast Boy by his hair. Once they were around the corner, he released them and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Whew. I thought he'd figure us out. You did a good job in there kid. Nice acting."

He began to walk to the servants' quarters, motioning for them to follow.

"Terra, you know the drill. I'm sorry, but I had to bring you back. He woulda had me and my crews heads hangin' off the edge of the pier."

"Dude, this isn't the time to joke around."

"Who said I was joking?"

He looked at Beast Boy with a blank expression as he told him about the methods of the man known as Sweetooth.

"If it ain't getting' chopped into pieces from a fan, he cuts of your body at the joints. First your hands and feet, then your arms at the elbows and knees, finally your arms and legs at the shoulders and waist. He waits for you to bleed to death, then hangs your severed head at the docks for the seagulls to pick at and the waves to rot. Eventually as the time passes the heads fall into the water from sheer wear and tear, and that's the last of you. The body is left for any stray dogs to eat. You don't want to piss him off."

Beast Boy gulped at the prospect of being punished by the sadistic man that had captured them.

They arrived at the quarters, and Ace opened the door and motioned for her to enter.

"Your... garments, for lack of a better term, are on one of the pallets on the ground. Find some that fit and get out to the party at the beer stand. Beast Boy, you keep an eye on her when she gets there. No tellin' what the guys will do anymore."

Terra entered and Ace closed the door, giving her privacy and began to lead Beast Boy down the hall back to the stairs.

"Man, never thought I'd run into her again."

"She's been here before?"

"Long story. Anyway, what the Hell were you two doin' out there? Didn't she mention this place?"

"No, not to me at least."

Ace shrugged his shoulders. "Can't say I blame her. I would want to forget this place as fast as lightning if I had been in her place."

"What was she?"

He sighed. "Look, I don't know exactly how to say this, but the servants, well... Let's just say their more eye candy than anything."

He noted the shocked look on Beast Boy's face. "Yeah, I know, the guys a frekkin' pervert. Keepin' girls like that and all. But I wouldn't worry about him. He has a sort of codes that he makes sure we all follow, and one is don't mess with the servants. She should be fine from him and most of the guys, but there are some who you'll need to be extra cautious about if they're ever in the same room as her. Some guys will just say "To Hell with the code." and try to "party" as they call it. I had to stop a few of them from killin' one girl a few days ago. They always seem to be tough guys until someone points a shotgun at them."

"But why not worry about that guy back there? He didn't look like the friendly type to me."

"He's not friendly, but he has some scruples, as small as they may be. He has never violated anyone as far as I know, and he never kills those who can't shoot back. But watch out for him. He'll be happy on minute then flaming mad the next. Just do as he says and you should be fine."

They had reached the staircase by now, and Beast Boy heard his communicator go off. He slapped his head. How could he have forgotten that? He opened it to reveal Robin on the small screen, the picture slightly scratchy because of the metal and distance that separated the two.

"Beast Boy, how's the mission."

"Really, really, bad. We've been caught by some sort of ganglord and now he's turned me into his personal entertainment and made Terra his slave. But on the plus side, we do have an ally."

He handed the device to a very stunned Ace, who looked at the screen to see the masked hero looking at him intensely.

"And you are?"

"Name's Ace, and who do I have the pleasure of speaking to?"

"That's my business. Now tell me what's going on."

"Me and my crew found your guys in the docks and had to bring 'em in. Terra's having to be a servant and the green dude's a pet. I can't do too much except make sure that they stay out of harm's way, so you gotta do something from your end."

"I'll do my best. Who's the ganglord?"

He's called Sweetooth, black, and as big as a beached whale. Uh oh..."

He saw two thugs heading up the stairs and he quickly closed the communicator and slipped it in his back pocket. The two passed on by them, staring at Beast Boy for a second before moving on into Sweetooth's room. Ace pulled out the communicator and flipped it back open.

"That was to close. Anyway, just do something to get them out. They aren't gonna make it if they stay for too long. Eventually, Sweetooth will get tired of them, and then they'll be fair game for the others, who'll rip 'em to pieces for a good laugh. Here's your guy again."

He handed Beast Boy the communicator and went to find Twitch, leaving Beast Boy alone in the dark staircase, and he moved back into the shadows so that he wouldn't draw attention to himself. He looked at Robin and spoke to his leader urgently, trying to convince him of Ace's idea for a rescue attempt.

"Come on, dude, we need to get out of here. Send over the police, I don't care, just _get us out._"

Robin sighed, holding his forehead with one hand as he sorted through his options. He couldn't leave them there, so that gave him little to work with. He looked back at Beast Boy and told him his decision.

"I'll be over there as soon as possible. Just hold out until I get there."

"Alright, but I don't know how long we have to hold out."

"I'll be there soon. See you soon, I hope."

Robin shut off the connection, and Beast Boy placed the communicator back in his pocket just as he heard a voice behind him.

"Beast Boy?"

He turned around, looking at whoever called his name, and nearly fainted from shock.

Terra was clad in the same thing that she had been in almost a year ago, walking by with her head held high as she passed him up, heading towards the masses of hoodlums that were getting' aggravated with the lack of drinks.

"Where's the beer?"

"Hurry up, I's thirsty."

"Come on, give us some booze, girl."

"The Hell you strollin' fo? Get out here and serve us up some beer!"

Beast Boy got over his shock and remembered Ace's words of caution. Becoming a rat, he found a dangling wire and climbed up to the support beams on the top of the roof. From here he could watch Terra and survey the rest of the room easily. He wondered why he had allowed them to get in this mess. Now Terra had to go back to being some powerful thug's servant...

Beast Boy diligently watched over the girl like a guardian angel, keeping an eye out for anyone that might try to harm the girl that couldn't fight off the numbers of armed gangsters regardless of her powers.

As the two Titans and their collaborator tried to find a way to get them out, another rescue attempt was being prepared by the leader of the team, who was packing up for the trip to Warren City.

()()()

Robin had again donned the trench coat outfit he had worn during Slade's reign over Jump City. He had packed various rations for the journey, and was priming the T-Sub for launch when he turned around and almost ran into Starfire. She looked at him like one looks at a person who has broken their word again after the final promise.

"You said you would not go after Slade."

"I'm going after Beast Boy and Terra. I can't leave them to the mercies of the gangs."

"But you are still breaking your word."

"I know, Star. But they will die if I leave them there. I have to go, regardless of previous commitments."

"So you again betray my faith in you."

Robin yanked his communicator out of his pocket, tossing it to her as he forcefully told her what was happening on the other end.

"Terra and Beast Boy have been captured by a ganglord. She's being used as eye candy for a bunch of men who have probably killed thousands altogether without hesitation, and the only thing keeping them alive is the fact that Terra happens to know one of them. Their lives are at a great risk, which gets bigger and bigger with every second I waste here, putting them in more and more danger. And you expect me to sit back and watch them be killed? I'm going Starfire. Now is the moment of choice. I either go around you or through you. Hurry up and decide, because I'm getting on that sub, and I'm getting on it now, whether you want me to or not."

He placed a hand on her shoulder and gently but firmly pushed her out of the way.

"I'm sorry, Starfire, but I won't let them die because of my mistake. I'll make it up later."

"How can I trust you this time? How, Robin?"

Robin stopped his march to the sub, looking at the floor. He remained silent as he began again his walk towards the T-Sub when he was stopped by a hand on his own shoulder. He turned to see Cyborg and Raven with grim looks on their faces as they stared at their leader.

"So that's it? You just gonna up and leave?"

"And this is why. So I wouldn't be delayed by you guys insisting I don't go save two members of my team who I sent to their possible deaths, whether by neglect or by gun I don't know. Now are you going to help me or stop me? Because that sub is going to Warren City, and I'll go around you, with you, through you, anyway I can to leave this Tower. Now what'll it be? Condemn Terra and Beast Boy to death, or let me go get them out of what I sent them into in the first place?"

Cyborg removed his hand, and began walking towards the T-Sub, something he had built with his own two hands.

"Hope you packed enough food for two, 'cuz I'm going with you."

"So am I." Raven said, staring at the Boy Wonder with a cold look. "So make sure there's enough for me."

"As well as I. We all are going or no one is going."

"Y'all can't go. Who's going to protect the city?"

"We already cleared it up with the chief of police. He says he can handle our absence for a while. It's all ready. We're going with you Robin. Whether you like it or not."

Robin gave in and hopped into the front seat, preparing to launch out into the open sea and swing into Warren City to break out his friends that were walking on a tightrope that he had sent them on.

Robin clenched his teeth as he hit the launch button, not caring if the ship was in peak condition.

The T-Sub shot out into the water like a bullet, the dismal Titans heading towards the docks where Terra and Beast Boy were being held captive, Robin swearing that he was going to rip apart anyone who had laid a harmful finger on either of his friends as he sped off towards Warren City and the horror that Slade had created in the dark depths of the sewers.

()()()

The journey was uneventful, the most exciting thing was the various marine life that zipped by, creatures like tuna and marlin and the occasional shark. But other than that, they were completely isolated from all manner of life, the ground of the coast being nothing but sand, unable to have any nutrients or provide a secure location for the protists that made up seaweed.

All the beauty of the open ocean by which they had to travel was lost to Robin as he urged the craft on towards Warren City, where Slade was waiting for him, unknown to the enraged and fearful boy. Robin heard his communicator go off and he opened it to find the man known as Ace on the display.

"Dude, where in Hell are you?"

"We're on our way. How are they?"

"Terra's handling herself fine, but the green guy can't seem to stay out of trouble. Hurry up, if this continues he's gonna get capped."

"Just keep him out of trouble. What's Terra doing that's making her fit in so well?"

"Hang on."

He saw as the screen was jostled around as it was passed to someone, and Robin then saw Terra clad in the garb that the ganglord Sweetooth had forced her to wear. Robin looked shocked at the articles of clothing she was clad in, talking with deadly seriousness as he interrogated the girl, who looked at the screen without a trace of embarrassment.

"Who made you wear that?"

"Sweetooth, who else?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, but BB isn't. He just got smacked around by a couple of guys that he tried to talk to. I'm trying to keep him unnoticed, but he's a magnet for trouble. He just can't figure out how to work here."

"I assume you've met Sweetooth before."

"I'll spare you the details."

"Whatever floats your boat. We're pulling into the harbor as we speak. Tell Ace to arrange us a meeting with Sweetooth. We'll get you out of there, somehow."

"As long as you do it fast, I'm all for it. And on a happier note, I overheard some of the thugs talking about Slade. Maybe Sweetooth knows something about him."

"I'll take that into consideration. Stay low and wait for us. Robin out."

Robin deactivated the communication line and put his communicator back in his coat pocket. He saw the docks through the rippling waves and made a beeline for them, preparing to disembark into what most would cower in fear from.

The T-Sub pulled into the pier silently as a ghost, its passengers morbid as they walked towards the warehouse that contained their friends and the man known as Sweetooth, who held them prisoner in the docks of Warren City while something worse was prepared to be unleashed upon the hapless citizens, unable to comprehend what was stalking the sewers underneath their feet, snarling in bestial rage as it wandered around looking for its unsuspecting targets as they shot toward him on a path of destruction.

The moonlight shone down on the sub as the Titans disembarked and entered the lair of Sweetooth, the most notorious criminal in all of Warren.


	3. Encounter

Robin walked towards the warehouse that Ace had specified after he had signaled Beast Boy to tell him that he was coming. He was to meet Ace near the warehouse, who would try to get him to Sweetooth and barter for the two trapped Titans and maybe get some information about Slade in the process. He had not forgotten Starfire's words. He remembered his promise, but circumstances had gone horribly awry, and now he had to get involved one way or the other. He passed by buildings as he walked at a brisk pace to the scheduled meeting place. The other Titans lagged back, not wanting to be near their leader should something happen. Only Starfire dared to venture near the focused teen, and even then she was hesitant to approach him. Finding the courage to do so, she placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Robin, is everything alright?"

He looked at her, and for a second she saw cold fury blazing in his eyes. But it quickly passed and he was the Robin she knew.

"Yeah, what makes you ask that?"

"Well, judging by... recent events, you have become more... determined to pursue Slade."

"I have to. It's my job. But I can handle this. I did when Terra first joined, I can do it now. It'll be fine."

Looking back at where he was going, he saw Ace in front of the warehouse where Terra and Beast Boy were. He waved to him and whispered back to Star, his voice apologetic as he talked to her gently.

"Star, I apologize in advance for whatever I have to do."

"What?"

He didn't answer her, but instead turned around and walked up to the morbid gangster, who was carrying nothing except the revolver in his pocket. Robin started the talk with a question.

"Are they alright?"

"They're fine, but we better go inside. From the looks of it, your guys have never dealt with crimelords, have they?"

"At least not those in control of humans. They'll get along alright. The one with the cloak can take care of herself and the rest alone. We just need to get to see Sweetooth."

Right. Come on, your guys are waitin' for you."

He turned to walk to the depot, and Robin followed him, and the Titans followed Robin, and together they entered the world of gangs.

Upon entering Robin noted that their was a party going on, not unlike the one that Beast Boy and Terra had been brought into. He saw the staircase, and Ace headed towards it, with Robin walking by his side as the others stayed together, surrounding the naïve Starfire who for her lack of knowledge of human culture was most vulnerable. One group noticed her, and whistled crudely at her, commenting loudly to his buddy that was sitting next to him.

"Wonder if those legs go all the way up."

Cyborg decided to set a reputation and grabbed the man by the collar, arming his sonic cannon with the other. Pointing it at the frightened thugs head, he talked dangerously soft, his eyes as hard as stone as he gave the man a scare in an attempt to make the comments stop.

"You want your head to go all the way off?"

"Uh, no, we're cool brutha."

"I don't remember you on the family tree."

With that, he threw the man back into the chair he had been sitting in and walked coolly back to the others, who were still on the lookout for any more disturbances, but Cyborg's assault had sapped all the rest's courage, and there were no more incidents.

Robin had been ignoring what had happened and was heading to the staircase and stopped halfway up, leaning against the wall facing the turn so that he could watch anyone coming up or going down. Ace had gone up in search of Beast Boy and Terra, and soon the three came down the stairs with Terra acting as though this was daily routine and Beast Boy looking nervous being out in the open, where he could be waylaid by more thugs. Upon seeing Robin, the two brightened up and ran the rest of the way, stopping short of their leader who grinned widely, embracing the two who he had been sure were dead. The others saw them, and rushed over to the three, patting each other on the back and generally finding out all the details of what had happened to the two Titans.

"Alright, you guys ain't dead!"

"What's with the get up?"

"Long story."

"Tell me, how has our friend been doing?"

"Could be better."

Robin waited for the flow of questions to slow down, and began his interrogation of Beast Boy and Terra.

"Alright, now that we're all caught up, tell me what you found out about Slade."

Robin noted the look on Starfire's face and put it aside as Terra started to tell him all that had been going on.

"Let's get out of here, too noticeable here."

They followed her to the second floor, where they talked in hushed tones so as not to draw any attention to themselves.

"The guy who runs this place is called Sweetooth. He's the big prep around. Has a humongous crime ring that rivals the Mafia. Anyway, he and Slade did some dealing according to Ace, who was in the room while they struck a deal. Apparently Slade needed a supporter, and Sweetooth was the best one. So Sweetooth gives him quite a lot of money, and that's all I know. Ask Ace, he might know more."

"You buzzed?"

Ace walked from the upstairs, having been talking with his friends about a recent gang fight that had given them more territory, which expanded Sweetooth's empire to nearly all of the docks. He had overheard their talk, and had been waiting to see what they would decide. He spoke now to Robin, not giving a chance to start talking as he answered the question that was on his mind.

"She told you basically everything, except that the money went to developing some sort of weapon. But it could be anything from a nuke to an auto fire shotgun, as far as I know. Maybe Sweetooth will tell you more when you go in to see him. Which, as luck would have it, he's ready to talk to you. Follow me."

He headed towards the door that led to Sweetooth with the Titans following him in silence, Terra lagging behind so that the ganglord wouldn't be suspicious of their intentions. Before they entered the room, Robin halted his team, telling them their orders in a tone that would not allow any argument.

"You guys wait out here. I need to talk to him one on one."

With that, he entered the lair of the crimelord, and immediately noticed that he had the feeling that he was about to be ambushed from behinds as he approached the man with a swagger that hid his suspicions expertly, heading for the man as though he were merely someone from the street. Sweetooth noticed this, and began to question the boy that stood before him.

"You quite young to be commin' to see meh. What you want with Sweetooth, eh?"

"I want to bargain for the green kid and the new girl, what's her name, Terra or something. What's your price?"

"Mah price? The green one, you can have 'im. He ain't no use to me. But the gurl, she ain't for sale."

"I need the girl."

"Fo what? You know her or somethin'?"

"You could say that."

"Well, she stayin' here."

"How about fifty grand?"

"Ho, you pay that much? Fifty grand? For that one girl? What, she your girlfriend or somethin'?"

"Not quite."

"Well, fifty grand is a lot of money. But she a runaway, and sellin' her would put me in a bad position with my gangs. Can't have that, now can we?"

"No, we can't. But she must leave here with me."

"Look, she found in my territory. Instead of havin' her killed, I make her a worker fo meh. But she run away. Now she back, and she back wid meh. I give her old job back, but she still unruly. I gonna make her pay for arrogance when I let her back with no punishment whatsoever. She gonna die, and she gonna die _slow..._so that all?"

Robin was horrified at this, but kept it covered up, acting indifferent to his statement as he moved on so as not to anger the man and send him out before he found out what he needed.

"Actually, I was wondering if you could give me information. Tell me all you know about Slade."

"Him? He come wantin' some money. I say no, 'til he tell me what it for. Can't tell you what it is, though. Ain't no one but me and him supposed to know. That's all you getting out of me. Now, is you done here?"

"Nothing except for the girl."

Sweetooth was starting to get irritated with the strange boy in front of him.

"I tell you she ain't for sale. That's it. Now go, I have business to attend to."

With that, he waved away the boy, who was already starting to think of a Plan B. He went back to the Titans who looked at him eagerly to see what exactly had happened in the meeting with Sweetooth. Robin was grim as he told Terra what the crazed man intended to do.

"Terra, you have to leave today."

"Well, that's the plan, right?"

"It's not that simple. Sweetooth's going to... have you executed. And didn't sound as though it was going to be painless."

Terra looked shocked and horrified as she remembered how the man carried out his "executions". They were more like slaughters than anything. And he had said it would be worse... she shivered at the thought of what the insane crimelord had in store for her.

"Terra, you're leaving tonight. We need a plan... Raven, could you take all their weapons?"

"No, there would be too many to concentrate on, plus I'm sure they have more than one. I'd be gunned down before any of you could blink."

"There has to be something we can do..."

"You need me again, don't you?"

Ace came from the shadows and joined the Titans, telling them all about Sweetooth's methods.

"He'll take her out back to kill her. He always makes a spectacle of it. Speeches, rotten vegetables, a few cuts, the whole nine yards. You guys have a ten-minute window before he gets down to business. Go back to him. He likes to flaunt off that sort of information. Wants everyone to see it. Thinks it puts him in high regard with the rest of us."

"Thanks for the info. All right, here's the plan. I'll be in the crowd watching. Beast Boy and Cyborg will be waiting for my signal. When I shout "Traitor!" you two dash by and grab her and high tail it out of there. Starfire and Raven will run interference. I'll send the thugs in the wrong direction to throw them off. Cyborg, you give Terra her uniform to change into. That thing is too disgraceful to wear. Ace, you will be with me. Have a weapon with you should things get rough. Everyone understand?"

They all nodded, and Robin nodded his head in reply, dismissing the group to go about preparing for their respective missions.

"Alright, that's all for now. Ace, go find out when the execution is scheduled. The rest of you, go to the party but keep within sight of each other. All right, meet back here in thirty minutes. Good luck."

The group went their separate ways to get ready for their assigned tasks. Cyborg, Terra and Raven left for the party, Robin went with Ace back to Sweetooth, and Starfire went to get Terra's uniform. Upon arriving, she saw that the room was filled with young women that had also been captured by the insane ganglord. They looked at her as she picked up the clothes, and Starfire was filled with sympathy for the girls who had had their lives taken away from them to serve murderers booze. She became determined to save them too, and left the room to go inform Robin of the womens' plight.

Terra had left to go to her post, acting as though nothing was wrong since she wasn't supposed to know that she was to be killed. Cyborg and Raven split up, finding spots where the crowd was thin, each staying within sight of Terra and each other, as Robin had instructed. Raven saw some drunken thugs stumbling around, and pulled her hood over her face, hoping not to be seen by the half-crazed men. Despite her hopes, they eventually noticed her, and staggered towards her, their breath reeking of booze as they attempted to charm the disgusted sorceress.

"Hey, baby, want a beer?"

"I'm not your baby."

The one who had spoken laughed in his drunken state, blasting hot air into her face and she wrinkled her nose in distaste of the smell.

"Aw, what's the problem, babe? We just want to have a good time. So how about it?"

"Not if you held a gun to my head."

"Well, we'll see about that."

He reached into his pocket to pull out what she assumed was a gun, but he was yanked off his feet by Cyborg, who had decided to step in on the telekinetic's behalf.

"This man bothering you, Milady?"

Raven smirked at the drunken man's struggles to get loose, answering him in a superior voice as she watched the mechanical teen hold him like he weighed nothing, staring into his eyes with a fire that struck fear into his heart, sobering him up in an instant.

"Actually, yes. Kindly dispose of this... pestilence."

Cyborg didn't acknowledge that he had heard, but simply tossed the man over his shoulder like he was a paper ball, and the man flew back to land on top of some other gangsters and made them all collapse. He looked at Raven as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened, talking to her like they were back at Titans Tower.

"Will they ever learn?"

Cyborg sighed in defeat and shook her head. "I doubt it. All they know is death and violence. I would bust 'em all right now, but I'd get full of lead before I could finish saying 'Freeze!'.

Ace had been listening to their conversation and now approached the mechanical teen, anger in his eyes as he told off the Titan, keeping his temper in check as he gave a sound beating to the teen, who took a step away from him like he was a bomb about to explode in his face.

"We aren't all like that. Look at me. I'm helping you get your friend out of this, which could cost my life if Sweetooth finds out. You see that man over there?"

Ace pointed to a man that was standing alone in a corner, his arms folded as he declined a drink from one of his buddies.

"That's Tigger. He works for Sweetooth, but gives almost all his share of the haul to charity and uses the rest to support Brainiac, who is slow in the head and looks up to him like he was his big brother. He regularly goes to visit orphanages to play with the kids and always brings them candy and other things that he either buys with loose change he finds or steals from convenience stores. He always shoots at the one's aiming for his crew before the one's aiming at him, and keeps one eye on Brainiac at all times. You think he wants to be a gangster? His momma and daddy's favorite hobby was beating the living Hell out of him, and he grew up on the streets, having to be a hit man to survive. He knows no other life. Can you really call him evil? You know nothing of us."

Ace stormed off to check on Terra, leaving a stunned Cyborg and Raven in his wake. Cyborg looked at the man Ace had indicated, and saw him playing a game of cards with the one called Brainiac, patiently waiting for him to make his move as the two played a simple game of Go Fish. Some other thugs kept an eye on the two, making sure that no newbies messed with the two. Raven spoke first, saying what was going through her friends mind.

"He's right. They aren't the mindless killers we've made them out to be. They know compassion and kindness, but can't openly display it because of stereotypes. "

"Yeah. Guess you have to live the life to really understand why they do what they do."

The two looked up as Robin charged towards them, his eyes sending out fear and urgency as he ran towards the other Titans as though the Devil himself was chasing him. Cyborg noted how he looked at them, and became business as the Boy Wonder skidded to a halt in front of them.

"Dude, what's wrong?"

"It's about Terra. He's going to kill her tonight!"

"What? We gotta tell the others!"

The Titans dashed towards Terra, who was talking with Terra and Beast Boy amiably. Ace and Cyborg locked eyes, and the mechanical teen said a silent apology to the kind-hearted gangster and turned back to the others. Robin spoke urgently to them, informing the heroes to Terra's new predicament.

"Terra, the execution's scheduled for tonight."

"_What?"_

"You're joking!"

"Look, now's not the time to debate it. We're leaving tonight, with everyone, no exceptions. Okay, follow through, but with a change. I'm going to the front row and taking on Sweetooth. I'll leave once Terra is out of harm's way. Ace, you keep my back."

Starfire asked the question that had flashed through her mind at the alteration.

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine. He shouldn't be too hard. Looks like he hasn't stood up in years."

"But..."

"Look, I can take care of myself. Terra's the most vulnerable next to me, since she's the one to be killed in the first place. I'm going to scout out the area around the execution site. Beast Boy, come with me. Everyone else, be ready."

Robin headed towards the back of the warehouse which Sweetooth had told him it would take place after returning to confirm the transaction of Beast Boy. The changeling followed his leader with grim determination, swearing to himself that the insane crimelord would pay dearly for every scrape he found on Terra when this was over.

Once the two reached the point Sweetooth had said, Robin surveyed the area. He saw all kinds of sharp objects like hunting knives that were crusted with blood, which also covered the ground around the area like a forbidding story of what happened here. There were untold amounts of bullet holes in the wall, and Robin was reminded of a military firing squad. He turned to Beast Boy, who was concentrating on everything but the gruesome spectacle that lay before them.

"You wait at this corner until I give the signal. Then you dash over there and let Cyborg snatch up Terra. I'll try and keep the thugs distracted from you, but keep an eye out for anything heading your way. Starfire will clear the way, all you have to do is head towards the T-Sub at dock eight."

"Right, but what if something delays us?"

"Then go through it. Just get to the docks, and don't stop for anything."

Beast Boy nodded, and turned to go back inside. Robin was about to follow when he heard a noise. He looked around and saw nothing. But the sound started again. It sounded like heavy breathing, almost a snarl of some monstrous beast. He dismissed it as the wind and walked the same path that Beast Boy had, hands in the outside pockets that contained his smoke capsules, rolling them between his fingers with nervous energy.

Arriving back inside, he saw that the others had gathered around Terra, and he waved them off, knowing that Sweetooth would suspect something if they were all crowded around her. He headed towards Raven, who looked a little subdued for someone of her reputation.

"Everything ready?"

"We're waiting for your signal."

"Alright. Gather everyone and be ready to go to work in five minutes."

Raven looked up and her eyes widened slightly.

"Looks like we don't have five minutes."

Robin looked up to see Terra being dragged to the back by two thugs while the entire room was whooping with excitement as they followed the three to the back. Sweetooth was in front, walking with the gait of a tyrant among his men, reminding Robin of a modern-day Hitler. He signaled for the others to get ready, and they all took their positions, ready to free their friend from the fate that awaited her at the hands of the insane ganglord.

Slade watched the procession with amusement. So his supporter had brought the Titans to his new location. This was an unexpected bonus, since it presented the perfect opportunity to introduce the Titans to his new weapon.

"Set him loose."

Two androids opened the cage, and the creature walked towards the masked man, its steps large and making it bounce up and down as it took each step. Slade held out the one thing that he had taken from the Titans, the one thing that he had that the creature could use to track them.

He allowed the monster to sniff at Terra's hairclip, the butterfly seeming to recoil away from the beast that inhaled its scent like a bloodhound about to track down a fox for the first time. The abomination registered the smell in its memory, and threw its head back in a bellow of anticipation to track down the source of this most wondrous smell.

Slade gave the creature orders, stroking its head as though it were a pet.

Find the source of the smell. Destroy all in your way. Go."

The creature growled in understanding, which soon grew in intensity into a roar of eagerness as it turned on its heel elegantly and charged towards the exit, using its superior senses to find the surface with ease. It stopped and sniffed the air. It picked up the scent, and also a smell that irritated the creature like a fly, a scent of nastiness and decay, like trash that had begun to rot.

Little did the monstrosity realize he was smelling Sweetooth, who at that moment was hyping up his goons for image before he executed the calm girl Terra, who did not suspect the being that now ran toward her, its ragged breaths coming evenly, never tiring because of the healing factor that allowed it to live on nearly no oxygen whatsoever.

The creature that had no name took off towards its prey, licking its lips in anticipation of the taste of blood running down its throat once more.

As the monster sped towards them, the Titans were setting up for the rescue attempt of Terra. Ace stood next to Robin, who was shouting all manner of insults at the geomancer while he looked around for his teammates. Beast Boy and Cyborg were set, the green changeling assuming the form of an ox, ready to barrel into the middle of them in his mad dash to Terra. Starfire and Raven were watching the scene in disgust, watching as Terra silently took the insults that the thugs threw at her. Raven noted that the one called Tigger stood apart from the crowd while Brainiac wandered here and there, making sure to stay within sight of his mentor. Sweetooth stood in front of the crowd, sitting in a seat that was on a riser so that he had a perfect view of the execution. Terra was thrown onto the bloodied ground, the gangsters yanking her to her feet to stand against the wall. Sweetooth grinned maniacally at her, showing off his teeth that were nearly spotless for reasons that escaped comprehension.

"Now you pay for runnin' away and disrespectin' meh when I let you back in wid meh Scott free. Any last words?"

Terra spat on the ground.

"Only that you burn in Hell."

Sweetooth laughed at her statement.

"Save meh a place, would yeh? Now face death by my hand."

"Then come down here and fight me one on one. Come on you coward, fight me. Show your goons what you really are."

"Ah, but my men would rather do the honors themselves. Goodie-bye, runaway."

Several thugs raised AK-47's, aiming at the blonde's heart. Robin sprung into action, jumping towards Terra as he kicked the gun out of one thug's hands.

"Traitor, die traitor!!!"

Beast Boy went through them as though they weren't there, steering straight for Terra as he threw gangsters to and fro in his rush to save the girl. Cyborg fired from his back at the rest of the firing squad, knocking them down and sending their weapons sailing in random directions as they were hit with the hero's cannon fire. The crowd quickly recovered from their initial shock and drew out their weapons to fire upon the green bull and the metallic Titan on his back when green and black bolts pelted them like rain as Starfire and Raven strafed over them, trying to keep their attention focused on them as they dodged around the return-fire. Robin saw Sweetooth stand up and grab a shotgun, waddling at an extraordinary pace towards his escapee. He aimed at them and fired, peppering them with BBs as they ducked their heads to present a smaller target.

"Youse ain't getting' away this time. Shoot 'em down, kill 'em, hurry!"

A mob responded, opening fire at the fleeing teens with whatever they had, but Robin laid into them swinging his staff every which way, striking them in various places but aiming mostly for their hands so as to make them drop their weapons. Starfire saw that one in particular had managed to keep a grip on his and was about to fire into the boy's unprotected back, and with a sudden rush of adrenaline zoomed towards him like a missile, knocking him to his knees and allowing Robin a second's respite as the gangsters turned to see what had happened to the man. Robin sent them flying with various attack patterns, changing rapidly so as to keep his opponents guessing. He shouted to Starfire, who was firing at some thugs who were about to open fire at them.

"Starfire, get out of here now!"

"But what about..."

"_Now!!!"_

He shoved her out of the group that threatened to surround them, and she was about to return to his side when a thug went flying towards her. She sidestepped the man and turned to look at Robin, who was being overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of the gangsters, who had decided on mêlée combat, bringing out pipes and bats and some using their bare hands to beat the Boy Wonder into submission.

"_I said go!"_

"I'm not leaving you here to die!" She shouted at him, and he threw away the gangsters to charge her, snatching her up to run with the speed of desperation, ducking and weaving to avoid the projectiles that flew all around them as he headed towards the docks. Turning a corner, he saw the others waiting for them, and he threw her at the Titans, who caught her before she could hit the ground.

"Leave!"

"But what about..."

They all saw the glint in the boy's eye, and they stepped back from him, fear for their leader grasping their hearts like a vise. He yelled at them with rage, turning to face the many foes who were pursuing them.

"_Leave!!!"_

He threw himself at the approaching mob with a battle cry that froze them in their tracks. Never before had they seen such passion in a victim, and they were forced onto the defensive as he maddened boy struck them like a thunderbolt, cracking bones and leaving wounded hoodlums everywhere he went as he reigned havoc upon the hapless crooks. The others watched in shocked silence at his relentlessness, his assault surpassing the fight with Slade's robots by far. Starfire clenched her fists as she saw the same malicious twinkle in his eye that had been present only one other time.

When he had been fighting Slade.

The boy tore through the thugs who began a full-blown retreat. Robin showed them no quarter as he relentlessly pursued them, striking down one only to move onto another, not caring how badly he was hurt or how much he hurt them. All that mattered in his mind was to make them pay. He was going to make them pay for every death, every robbery, every family they slew in the name of Sweetooth, who had lagged behind to let his men handle the teens. The man saw his legions dash past him in fear, and he grabbed one by the front of his shirt. He brought him in close and snarled into his face.

"Where's you all goin', eh?"

"There's a kid back there beatin' us all. We're outta here!"

He wrenched himself from the ganglord's grasp, resuming his run towards the safety of the docks. Sweetooth saw the boy in hot pursuit, and he aimed his shotgun at him. He fired at his legs, but the boy jumped up and threw a freeze disk at the man, he made to dodge the incoming projectile, but it detonated in his face, completely encasing the man in ice. Robin landed expertly in front of him, standing up to stare into the others glazed eyes with a fiery wrath that would have melted the ice quicker than an icicle in the Sahara if it had been a real fire. Robin spoke to the man who he knew couldn't hear him, but it felt right to do it.

"Now you will pay for everyone you have ever hurt. Save me a spot, would ya?"

Robin raised the staff to jab it into the man's face, aiming to kill him, when a hand grabbed his wrist. He looked behind him to see Starfire staring at him with disbelief and sadness at what he was about to do.

"Robin, you said you could handle it."

"He tried to kill us! He's murdered countless people for pleasure and nearly slew Terra for so-called impudence! What makes you think he deserves life?"

"No one deserves death, not even him."

"He needs to die."

"Robin, he can't even fight back. You would kill a defenseless person?"

"If it was scum like him, I would every opportunity."

Starfire let him go, stepping back from him in defeat as tears welled up in her eyes but were not able to fall down her face.

"You are not the Robin I know. The Robin I know never killed anyone, no matter what the situation. What has Slade done to you? You have let him corrupt you. You act like him, talk like him, _feel_ like him."

"You dare say I'm like him?"

"But you are, Robin. You are. You want to kill without mercy. You tried to destroy a retreating foe. You are like Slade, Robin. It has felt as though he's standing near me every time weare in the same room together lately."

"I am not like him."

"Robin, You are Slade. You cannot be the Robin we know. You might as well destroy me as well."

Starbolts formed in her hands as grim determination formed in her eyes through the tears.

"Because I am not going to let you kill that man, you monster."

"Starfire, no..."

He never got to finish his sentence when something slammed into Starfire, knocking her to the ground as the figure continued to skid past her, crouched into a ball for balance. Robin instantly forgot the man behind him, rushing over to stand between Starfire and the being protectively, holding his staff at the ready to strike out at the form should it attack again.

"Who are you?"

The thing paused for a moment, then reared up to its full height as it turned and swung at him, slicing through his staff as though it were cheese rather than the alloy that could withstand having a building fall on it. Robin looked in shock as Slade's bioweapon roared at him, taking a swipe at him with its bladed hand. He jumped back, dodging the blade that nearly severed him in half as he sailed backwards. Starfire saw the beast and shot starbolts at it from her prone position, trying to force it into retreat away from them. It simply took the bolts, the charred skin healing right before their eyes. It seemed to smile evilly at them, and it lunged at the two Titans with its clawed hand upraised, ready to slice through their bodies and drink the flavorsome liquid that flowed through their veins.

Starfire didn't react to the creature's sudden attack, and nearly had her head severed had Robin not pulled her back. Instead of letting her go, he turned and ran away from the beast, which howled with glee at the hunt and took off after the frightened Titans, slobber dripping from its lips as it tracked them better than if it had eyes, the vibrations they produced being more than enough to tell it where the two were. Robin ran like the wind, not looking back at the creature that was quickly gaining on them. It would overtake the two within seconds, and he urgently tried to think of a way to escape the monster that now pursued them, seeming to smack its lips as it neared its prey, ready to tear through flesh and bone to carry out its master's orders.

It pounced at them, nearly shoving its blade through the two when Starfire lifted up into the air, taking the Boy Wonder with her as she sought safety in the air. She looked at the creature, and it seemed to be staring into her soul, regardless of the fact it couldn't see, much less stare. But the feeling was there all the same, and she stared back at it, her eyes wide as she looked at the monstrosity that had nearly killed them. It continued its gaze for a moment longer, then propelled itself upward with a powerful jump, rising far above the flying Titans and coming down to bring its clawed hand in a karate chop on her back, sending her and her cargo hurtling to earth as he managed to brace himself for the fall, landing so that he rolled along the ground, holding Starfire to his chest so that they weren't impeded by her body. Looking back at the creature, he saw it land and it put out its clawed hand to stop it from falling forward. It stayed still for only a moment, looking up to roar at them before charging into another assault, ready to tear apart the two with sword and claw as it approached them with speed and grace, rearing back its blade to slice them in half. Robin jumped over its head and kicked it in the neck. It stumbled forward, and he took this time to run towards the others, releasing Starfire so that she could fly. She was about to lift him up again when he waved her back.

"Star, go get the others."

"But that creature will kill you."

"It'll kill you too if you don't do as I say! Go, I'll hold it off!"

That said, he whirled around to meet his foe head on, attacking with his fists, hitting it in every single vital area he could think of in his panicked state. Starfire didn't leave, instead trying to fire off more starbolts, aiming with one hand, accuracy being the key than quantity, since she couldn't hit the boy who was doing his best to keep the abomination's attention on him.

"Starfire, _run!!!_"

The beast lunged at him, and he jumped up to spin kick it into a wall. He turned to stare into her eyes, the look in his own making her obey as though she were in a trance.

"Leave. Now."

Robin turned and prepared for the fiend's next move, and the alien girl turned and flew faster than she had ever flown before. As she blurred past buildings, she prayed silently to herself that he would be all right.

Seeing the others, she let gravity pull her to land as she hastily told them the predicament Robin was in.

"Hurry, Robin requires our assistance. Follow me!"

They sensed the urgency in her voice, and as the silence reigned they heard the boy's cries of anger and pain, as the unseen battle raged on, putting gladiators to shame with its intensity.

The Titans responded to the noise immediately. Raven and Terra took to the air, while Beast Boy became a horse and allowed Cyborg to ride on his back as they all charged towards their leader, baying like wolves to the hunt as they approached the epitome of savagery that smelled the approach of the scent that its master had allowed it to sample. It seemed to grin eagerly as it continued to combat the unseen Robin, who was fighting without pause, adrenaline making him feel as though he had just started to fight, regardless of the many wounds that the creature had made with tooth and claw and blade.

The Titans neared the scene of battle, ready to give their lives for the others to stop the monstrosity that Slade had created, their only comfort being that it was toying with them.

At least for the moment.

Slade watched with slight amusement, seeing his creation perform flawlessly as he sat back in his chair as though it were a throne, reveling in the thought that soon he would once again have control of Jump City. He smiled under the mask. Everything was perfect.

Everything was oh so perfect.

Slade relaxed in the chair, unaware of what was going on in his weapon's mind as it fought on, seeming to dance with joy as it sensed the approach of more meals in the cold, moonlit night, ready to feast on human flesh like candy as the Titans got closer, not knowing exactly what was happening in the background underneath the streets of Warren City. 

So ends chapter three. The continuing fight will take place in chapter four. For some reason, the middle of this chapter felt wrong in writing. Ah well... Probably nerves. Hope you liked it.


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